The NCAA could be close to bringing an early signing period to football
Maybe we'll remember this week when the NCAA finally got it together. Okay, probably not. But college sports' bureaucratic power has taken three steps in the proper direction this week. After axing the 10-second rule before it came to a vote and removing the silliness from the targeting rule, the NCAA is reportedly discussing adding an early signing period for football.
"I think everyone wants an early signing period," NCAA associate director of operations Susan Peal told ESPN.com. "It's just trying to nail down what's the appropriate date for that."
In the snake-like fashion of the organizational flowchart, the Conference Commissioners Association - a gathering of all 32 Division I conference commissioners - controls the national letter of intent program. The CCA is set to discuss the issue at its annual meeting in June.
According to an NCAA survey, most coaches are in support of an early signing period, but finding a consensus as to where to place it on the calendar has proven elusive. However, the majority can agree an early signing period would end the resource-wasting process of re-recruiting a committed prospect for months on end while waiting for the first Wednesday in February to arrive. The majority, but not all.
"I know the [Southeastern Conference] coaches are not in favor of changing the recruiting calendar," Kentucky's Mark Stoops said in January. "If things start moving up, it changes the way we've been doing things for a long time."
